Australian Open: Madison Keys wins title in thrilling final
text_fieldsMelbourne: American tenniser Madison Keys finally kissed her long-awaited Grand Slam title on Saturday, winning the prestigious Australian Open 2025 women’s singles. The 29-year-old, who lost her last Grand Slam final in 2017 at the US Open's title match, beat two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 in a thrilling final at the Rod Laver Arena in a battle that lasted two hours and two minutes.
With this victory, Keys etched her name in history as the first woman to defeat the world’s top two players at a major since Svetlana Kuznetsova at the 2009 French Open and the first to do so at the Australian Open since Serena Williams in 2005, IANS reported.
At 29, Keys is one of the older first-time major champions. She becomes the fourth-oldest behind Flavia Pennetta, who was 33 when she won the 2015 US Open, Ann Jones, who was 30 when she won Wimbledon in 1969, and Francesca Schiavone, who was 29 when she triumphed at Roland Garros in 2010.
Keys enters the history books not just for her victory but also for her impressive form leading up to the tournament. Her 12-match winning streak, which includes the Adelaide title two weeks earlier, is the longest of her career. Interestingly, this final was the first between players who had both won lead-up tournaments since the Australian Open shifted to its January calendar position in 1987.
Two-time defending champion Sabalenka had come into the final on a 20-match winning streak at Melbourne Park and with an 11-0 unbeaten record in 2025 after lifting the Brisbane trophy three weeks ago. She had been aiming to become the first woman to seal a hat-trick of Australian Open titles since Martina Hingis in 1997-99 and owned a 4-1 head-to-head lead over No.19 seed Keys.
The Australian Open marked Keys' 46th Grand Slam main-draw appearance. Only two players have made more appearances before winning their first title- Flavia Pennetta with 49 and Marion Bartoli with 47.